Not applicable.
Not applicable.
Not Applicable
The present invention relates to a system for dispensing a product from a container. This system is designed to permit the container to be supported in an inverted orientation to accommodate gravity flow of the product in and from the container. The system accommodates precise dispensing control of the product. The system is especially suitable for use with a flexible container which is squeezable.
There are a wide variety of packages which include a (1) a container, (2) a dispensing discharge structure extending as a unitary part of, or as an attachment to, the container, and (3) a fluent product contained within the container. Such packages are typically employed for general household or home products, including personal care products such as skin care lotions, liquid soaps, and the like.
Some such packages employ finger-actuated pumps which are especially useful with highly viscous fluids because such pumps can be operated to dispense the product on demand in contrast with a non-pump package wherein the user must wait for the viscous product to flow under the force of gravity when a container is tipped over for dispensing.
There are other types of packages that do not employ a finger-actuatable pump, and which are normally maintained in an inverted orientation with a dispensing structure at the bottom of the package so that the viscous product is generally present at the bottom dispensing structure and available for immediate dispensing. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,033,655, 5,655,687 and 5,819,984 which disclose packages that employ a single dispensing valve for discharging a single stream of a fluent product (which maybe a liquid, cream, or particulate product). The package includes a flexible, resilient, slit-type valve at one end of a generally flexible bottle or container. The valve is normally closed and can withstand the weight of the product when the container is completely inverted, so that the product will not flow through the valve unless the container is squeezed.
Bottom dispensing packages and finger-actuatable pump packages do have some drawbacks. For example, a finger-actuatable pump package typically requires that the product be drawn up from the bottom of the container through a downwardly extending dip tube. Some product may remain in the bottom of the container and cannot be completely drawn out of the container through the dip tube. Also, some finger-actuatable pumps tend to drip or xe2x80x9cdroolxe2x80x9d after each dispensing actuation because it is difficult for such pumps to cleanly and sharply cut off the product flow.
Further, if one wants to pack a finger-actuatable pump package for traveling, one must provide for the possibility that the pump could be inadvertently depressed during travel, and that could result in an unwanted discharge of product. Some finger-actuatable pump packages permit the pump to be pushed downwardly into the container and locked in that position to prevent further actuation during travel. However, pushing the pump to the fully actuated, locked-down position typically results in the dispensing of an unwanted amount of product.
Finger-actuatable pump packages have other disadvantages. They are relatively expensive owing to the number of small parts, typically including metal springs and metal ball check valves. Further, in order to refill a finger-actuatable pump package, the pump must be first removed from the container. This can be relatively messy because product typically clings to the pump and dip tube, and some product may tend to drip from the pump and dip tube when the pump is removed to permit refilling of the container.
Dispensing closures on inverted, xe2x80x9csqueezexe2x80x9d-type packages also have some disadvantages. Typically, the inverted dispensing package closure must be relatively large and have a flat surface on which the package sits in order for the package to remain upright and not be easily tipped over. Because the dispensing opening is located within the base profile of such an inverted dispensing package, it is typically difficult to control the quantity of the dispensing flow and the direction of the flow owing to the fact that the discharge opening is not readily visible to the user during such use. Also, during dispensing of fluent product from such a large profile closure, the fluent product can more easily drip on portions of the closure. Further, with an inverted dispensing package, the package must be turned upright to be manually opened and closed for each use unless a dispensing valve is provided.
It would be desirable to provide an improved dispensing package or system in which fluent product could be always immediately available for dispensing until the container is substantially completely emptied. It would be preferable to provide such an improved package with a design that does not require the use of a relatively expensive and complicated finger-actuatable pump.
It would also be beneficial if such an improved dispensing system could operate to dispense fluent product with little or no mess or dribble.
It would also be desirable to provide an improved dispensing system that could readily accommodate refilling of the container with fluent product or that could readily accommodate removal of an empty container and replacement with a full container.
Such an improved dispensing system should also preferably have the capability for facilitating dispensing of the fluent product when the interior of the container is pressurized (e.g., when the container is squeezed or when the container""s internal pressure is increased by other means).
It would also be advantageous if such an improved system could accommodate bottles, containers, or other packaging components having a variety of shapes and that are constructed from a variety of materials.
Further, it would be desirable if such an improved system could accommodate efficient, high-quality, large-volume manufacturing techniques with a reduced product reject rate to produce a system with consistent operating characteristics.
It would also be advantageous if such an improved dispensing system could (1) accommodate two or more constituent fluent materials which could be separately stored prior to use, and (2) subsequently permit the dispensing of the constituent materials together as a combined product. It would also be desirable to provide means for sealing such system to prevent inadvertent discharge of the constituents during manufacturing, shipping, handling, etc. Such a system should be readily operable by the user and not interfere with combining the constituent materials when it is desired to dispense the constituent materials together as a combined product.
The present invention provides an improved system which can accommodate designs having the above-discussed benefits and features.
The present invention provides a system for dispensing a product. The system can accommodate the discharge of fluent materials such as liquids, creams, or particulate matter, including powders.
The dispensing system of the present invention is especially suitable for dispensing relatively viscous material in a manner that provides the viscous material at a discharge aperture for substantially immediate discharge. The user is not required to operate a finger-actuatable pump or to wait for gravity flow of the material to a discharge aperture.
The dispensing system of the present invention allows for substantially precise dispensing control and allows the user to readily observe the discharge of the product at the target area. There is substantially little or no mess or dribble after the desired amount of product has been discharged.
One form of the dispensing system of the present invention readily accommodates refill of the product container or complete replacement of an empty product container with a new, full product container.
According to one embodiment of the invention, the container employed with the dispensing system of the present invention can be readily re-sealed for travel.
The system of the present invention can also be optionally designed to advantageously store a plurality of constituent materials as separate quantities which are not combined during storage. During use, only the amounts of constituent materials that are to be dispensed are combined during the dispensing process.
According to one aspect of the dispensing system of the present invention, the dispensing system is in the form of a support base for supporting a container. The container has an opening to the container interior and is adapted to hold a fluent product. The container need not necessarily be regarded as a part of the dispensing system support base per se. However, according to another aspect of the invention, the container may be regarded as a part of a combination dispensing system.
The support base is adapted to support the container while the container opening is oriented at least somewhat downwardly to accommodate gravity flow of the fluent product out of the container through the container opening. The support base has (1) a receiving aperture for receiving the container opening, (2) a discharge aperture, and (3) a flow path extending between the receiving aperture and the discharge aperture.
In a preferred form of the system, there is a shut-off valve which is located in the flow path between the receiving aperture and the discharge aperture. The valve is manually actuatable between (i) a closed orientation occluding fluent flow through the flow path, and (ii) an open orientation permitting fluent flow through the flow path.
In a preferred form of the invention, at least part of the flow path extends through an elongate spout which accommodates discharge of the fluent product at a target area that is readily accessible and visible to the user.
Further, in a preferred embodiment, the container is a squeezable container which permits the user to squeeze the container to discharge a desired amount of product from the discharge aperture.
In a preferred embodiment, the container is provided with an initial seal, which can be a pressure-openable valve, such as a resiliently flexible, refill valve. Such a valve or other seal initially holds the product in the container. The use of a refill valve or seal permits the container to be refilled. If a refill valve is employed, then a travel seal, such as a rigid closure, is preferably provided over the valve on the container until the container is mounted in the support base.
In a preferred embodiment, the support base includes a discharge spout with a resiliently flexible dispensing valve which opens in response to a differential between the pressure acting against the side of the closed valve facing inwardly and the pressure acting against the side of the closed valve facing outwardly.
In a preferred embodiment, the support base also includes a vent for accommodating the in-venting of air from the ambient atmosphere to the interior of the container so as to accommodate flow of product out of the container. Preferably, such a vent system includes a resiliently flexible vent valve which opens inwardly toward the container in response to a differential between pressure acting against the side of the closed valve facing toward the container interior and the pressure acting against the side of the closed valve facing away from the container interior.
Numerous other advantages and features of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following detailed description of the invention, from the claims, and from the accompanying drawings.